


So Have You Got the Guts

by ideasCornucopia



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Banter, Horses, M/M, Pining Percy Jackson, Quest fic, Soulmates AU- sort of, monster fighting, they're knights!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-28
Updated: 2020-12-28
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:21:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28379175
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ideasCornucopia/pseuds/ideasCornucopia
Summary: “I still don’t get what your problem with Percy is,” Jason sighs, as they walk through the castle grounds. The ground is white, and there’s a thin layer of snow on all the marble columns. “He’s been the most popular member of court since he arrived! The maids and even some of the other knights are always fawning over him.”Nico just furrows his brows and looks away. “I just don’t like him, okay?” Sir Percy has done nothing butmockhim since he arrived at the castle, how could he?“Well, I hope you can get along, because you’re really the only ones I can trust with this quest.” Jason slaps Nico in the back, smiling. “Who knows, maybe you’ll even become friends.”Or in which Nico and Percy are both Knights of the Realm, and Jason decided to send them off to find some stupid flowers.
Relationships: Nico di Angelo & Hazel Levesque, Nico di Angelo & Jason Grace, Nico di Angelo/Percy Jackson
Comments: 2
Kudos: 123
Collections: Percico Secret Santa 2020





	So Have You Got the Guts

**Author's Note:**

  * For [blancherries-art](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=blancherries-art).



> This is my piece for the Percico Secret Santa 2020, for the talented [blancherries-art ](https://blancherries-art.tumblr.com/) ! You said Fantasy AU and I went a bit overboard. Hope you like it!

One of the servants arrives while Nico is busy looking after Jules-Albert in the stables. “T-The prince has summoned you, sir.” The maid says, shaking, and Nico just rolls his eyes.

Why are people still so intimidated by him? It’s been nearly a year since his sister and him moved into the castle, and Prince Jason knighted him in front of the entire court. You’d think everyone would have gotten used to his spooky aura by now.

But well, Nico guesses, his reputation as the Dark Knight precedes him. 

Sir Nico nods. “I’ll be there shortly.” The maid gives a tiny bow before scurrying away.

Jules neighs loudly, shaking his head at him. Nico passes a hand through his dark pelt, shushing him. The horse’s breath is visible, due to the cold. 

Jules is a war-horse, used to the long days spent on the road back when Nico was no knight, but just an errant. He might have grown used to more apples and treats, but Nico knows he grows restless when left in the stables for too long.

“Don’t worry, old friend,” The knight tells his horse. “I have a feeling you’ll be seeing some action soon enough.”

When Nico arrives at the war room, the council has just ended, and the lords and generals are moving into the table of snacks and food left by the servants. A couple of them give Nico a nod of respect, and they all seem less intimidated by him than the maid did.

“Thank the gods you’re here,” Jason says. “I was about to go crazy inside there.”

Nico gives the prince an amused look. “What happened, did Duke Octavian present one of his stupid campaign ideas again?”

“Worse,” Jason replies. “He’s explained all the reasons why I should marry his cousin. You know, the ginger one who hates him,” The knight winces. “Yeah, just get me out of here.” 

“As you command, your highness.”

While Jason’s free time has grown slim as he takes on more and more duties, his friendship with Nico has only grown with time. The prince leads the knight into one of the courtyards, looking around to make sure no one’s listening in. 

“You know how you’re one of my closest companions, right?” Jason asks, and no, it doesn’t make Nico swell with pride.

“Yes, Jason, I know.”

“And you remember how you owe me a favor? From that time you went to steal a flower from a nature wizard but you failed and he turned you into a corn plant, so I had to go and save you? And you made me promise that I wouldn’t tell anyone?”

Nico’s face darkens. “Yes, I remember that too.” And he doesn’t like where this is going. 

Jason gives him an apologetic look. “So… how much would you like to go into another flower-related quest?”

Half an hour later, the prince is turning his chambers upside down looking for the old story book his sister used to read to him as a kid. 

The flowers come from one of the stories. They're called Pyrrha roses, and gifting one to someone was seen as the grandest of romantic gestures a few centuries ago, apparently. The flowers only blooms during winter, and they only grow at the very top of a monster-ridden mountain a few days ride away from here.

Jason’s book contains a picture, and Nico has to admit, it _is_ a pretty flower.

“When I said your and Lady Piper's mutual problems with unwanted suitors would be fixed if you two just got together already, this wasn’t what I meant.” Nico comments.

“Come on, it will be romantic!” Jason insists. “Didn’t you hear a word I said about the flowers? How they represent eternal, undying love?”

“You said they were created by the gods after two lovers that _died_ ,” Nico deadpans. “I don’t see how they would make a good engagement gift.”

“It’s ‘till death do us part and all that, isn’t it?” The prince replies. 

The knight rolls his eyes. “Whatever. I still don’t understand why you can’t just go get them yourself. You’re the one who wants to marry Piper, not me!”

“With my father out of the kingdom, and my siblings out on the front, I have to stay in the castle,” Jason explains. “And Lady Piper’s entourage arrives in a week! I have to be here to welcome her. If it weren’t for that, I’d go myself.” Nico gives him an unimpressed look. “I’m being serious, Nico! This is very important, and you’re the only one I can trust with this quest.” 

Nico’s pride isn’t as big as Wise Girl’s, but flattery does work on him, from time to time.

The knight exhales. “Fine. I’ll go,” And before Jason can wrap him into one of his patented bro-hugs, he adds. “But I won’t be going alone. Aside from the monsters, there’s also reports of bandit attacks down those roads, and I’m not dying for some stupid flowers.”

Jason smiles. “Don’t worry, I know just the guy to ask.”

Nico becomes more onboard with the whole quest thing as Jason walks them down the tower. With the war going on, and most of the troops at the front, the younger knights were left with nothing much left to do besides guarding the castle. It’s been a while since Nico’s gone out on a quest, Jules isn’t the only one that misses the road. 

Maybe he’ll even bring some of the flowers back for himself. Not that there’s anyone that he’d give them too, but the thought is nice.

And then the prince mentions Lord Poseidon’s youngest hellspawn and everything goes out of the window

Nico turns to Jason, fuming. “No. Absolutely no. I am _not_ going with him!”

“He’s the only one available.” Jason tells him. 

“What about Frank? Or Annabeth?” 

“They’re both out in the field.”

“Leo?”

“He’s got an injured shoulder.” 

“The Stolls? _Clarisse?”_ Fuck it, he’ll take her over Sir- Sir Letrine Water any day. 

Jason gives him another apologetic smile. “I’m sorry, but you’ll have to go with him.” Nico harrumphs, loudly, with every step down the stairs he takes. Jason rolls his eyes and calls him a drama queen. 

_“_ I still don’t get what your problem with Percy is,” Jason sighs, as they walk through the castle grounds. The ground is white, and there’s a thin layer of snow on all the marble columns. “He’s been the most popular member of court since he arrived! The maids and even some of the other knights are always fawning over him.”

Nico just furrows his brows and looks away. “I just don’t like him, okay?” Sir Percy has done nothing but _mock_ him since he arrived at the castle, how could he?

“Well, I hope you can get along, because you’re really the only ones I can trust with this quest.” Jason slaps Nico in the back, smiling. “Who knows, maybe you’ll even become friends.”

Nico’s furrows his brows even more. “I truly doubt that.” 

Sir Percy arrived a few months after Nico and Hazel did. At first, Nico was just glad the court had someone new they could fixate on, instead of trying to find out every single thing about oh, the Dark Knight’s tragic backstory. 

And then he met the guy.

“So you’re the famous Dark Knight, huh?” Was the first thing he told Nico, as they shook hands. “I’ve heard so many stories about you.” The man’s sea-green eyes traveled through Nico’s armor, from head to toes and he smirked. “I wonder if all of them are true...” 

Nico frowned. “What do you mean?”

“Do you do a lot of sword fighting, Sir Nico?”

“Yeah?” That’s what they did. They’re knights.

Percy’s smirk only grew wider. “It shows.” He squeezed Nico’s hand and leaned forward, just a little. “Maybe we could spar some time. See whether you live up to those stories or not.” 

Nico was too taken aback to reply. Is this guy _serious?_

Sir Percy just lets go of his arm, still grinning, and moves on to meet the rest of the band. 

It went on like that for a while- Percy bringing up a duel practically every time he was alone with Nico. Which, to be fair, wasn’t often, but it got annoying after the third time it happened.

“Come on! I’ll make it worth your while, just give me a chance.” Percy asked.

“With all due respect,” Nico told him. “I would absolutely wipe the floor with you.”

Jason had found Percy in some peasant village, or so the rumor mill went. The guy was half-starved and barely knew how to hold a sword properly, but he had guts and a good heart, which meant he would fit right in with their merry band once he got some proper training.

“I’ve been practicing!” Percy insisted. “Jason says I’m pretty good, for a rookie.” Jason told everyone that- his job was to be the encouraging leader. Percy leaned closer again. He did that a lot. He had no concept of personal space and it made Nico like him even less. “To be honest, I’m starting to think maybe you’re not even that good.” Nico turned at him, unimpressed. “Maybe all those stories were exaggerating. I’ve never actually seen you fight any of the other knights. When you’re not off on a quest, you mostly just stay on the stables, brooding with your horse.”

“I don’t brood!” Nico hissed at him.

Percy grinned, in that stupid way only he did because he’s a stupid person. “Yeah, you do,” Nico glared at him with all his might. “Hey, I didn’t say it was a bad thing,” He looked away, for a second. “It’s kind of adorable, actually.”

Not for the first time, Nico wondered why he had to put up with all this teasing from a lesser knight.

On one majestic occasion, during one of those blasted banquets the royal family threw from time to time, Sir Percy approached Nico again. He wasn’t less of an arrogant prick, but he was also kind of drunk.

“Hey, Nico!” Percy called from one of the tables. Nico, who’d just came back from a very draining campaign, just turned at him and groaned. “You still haven’t taken me up on that offer to spar!”

“I apologize,” Nico replied, already annoyed. “I haven’t found the time.”

“Bro!” One of Percy’s friends, Sir Grover it seemed, was already rushing to his side. “Can you come back to the table, please? This isn’t the moment-”

“No, no, I’m good. I’m just- talking with Sir Dark-and-awesome here,” Percy replied with a loopy smile. Nico furrowed his brows, why won’t this guy stop with the teasing, gods? “It’s an important conversation.”

“I’m sorry,” Grover turned to Nico and apologized. “He had a few too many drinks.” 

“I can see that,” Nico eyed the guy with disdain. 

“Maybe we should dance instead!” Percy called, leaning into one of the marble columns, looking quite silly. “What do you say, Nico? Would that be more to your liking?”

Nico didn’t like where this was going. “I don’t dance.”

“Lies!” Percy protested. “I saw you dance with some blond guy just now. ” Nico tensed for a second, and then he blushed brightly. “You won’t fight me, but you danced with the first guy who asked, so I figured this might work better.” Nico stayed silent, with his fists clenched. Percy’s smile disappeared. “Aw man, please tell me you also like brunettes. Would you dance with a brunette?” 

And that was it. “Who I dance with is none of your concern!” Nico yelled, and a few of the nobles and other knights turned around to look at them. There were some whispers, and Grover stepped away, scared. 

Nico felt 13 again, alone in a strange land surrounded by people afraid of him.

Percy blinked. “I didn’t mean it like that-”

“Maybe you should go with your friend before you embarrass yourself further.” Nico told him coldly. 

The dark knight huffed, and walked away angrily, with the eyes of the entire court staring right at him. 

The next day, Nico was on the castle grounds with his full armor already on, hitting a training dummy like it had personally killed his sister. Sir Percy showed up a couple of hours later, equally armored and looking ashamed.

“I’m sorry about last night, Nico. I came off too strong and embarrassed you,” He started. “I apologize. I understand if you-” And then Nico tossed a sword at him. “-What?”

“You wanted a duel,” Nico said. “So here’s your duel.”

Percy paused. “You know, when I said that I mean that more in a, ‘hey, I want to get your attention’ way, not in a ‘hey, I actually want to fight you’ way.”

Nico’s patience was running thin. “You wanted my attention, well, now you’ve got it, kelp-face,” The dark knight raised his sword up in a challenge no one would have been able to back down from. “Unless _you_ ’re the one who’s all talk and no skill.” 

“Okay,” Percy laughed, moving to grip his sword properly. “There’s no need to insult me.”

“You’re the one who’s been mocking me since he got here!” Nico’s grip tightened on his blade. “Now shut up and show me what you’ve got!”

Percy smirked. “With pleasure.”

Their blades finally met each other, and they hadn’t danced last night, but they were dancing now. Nico wasn’t pulling any punches, and neither was Percy.

There weren’t a lot of people that could match Nico on a duel. He’d gone toe-to-toe with the best fighters of the kingdom, and not a lot of them could match his estamina. Nico’s fighting style was aggressive, but it was also calculating. He analyzed his opponent, he found weaknesses and used strategy. He had more experience than most of the knights, and most of them were intimidated by him. The few ones that weren’t knew better than to take him one on one.

Percy wasn’t like that, though. Jason had been right, the boy had a lot of talent. His movements were still sloppy at times, but he’d been polished and sharpened in the time he’d been here. Now, he was not only extremely quick on his feet, but stronger and smarter. Nico knew that Reyna made the rookies run drills until they couldn’t feel their hands and legs, and Percy hadn't lied about how much he'd been training lately. 

The result was a fighter that moved on instinct more than anything, that knew how to dodge a blow before it came and knew where to land one when he could. He was strong and merciless. 

It was _fantastic_.

Nico stepped forward, his sword clashing against Percy’s, the other knight’s back hitting a wall. They were both panting, but kept pushing against each other, not wanting to back down. 

“You think you’re so tough, huh?” Nico leaned into him, just a little. He felt like there was fire running under his veins, his heart racing and beating.

Percy just looked him right in the eye, that smirk of his growing on his lips yet again. “Tougher than you think. _”_ He answered, and then he surged against Nico with tremendous strength, disarming the dark knight and making him fall down to the floor in a single swoop.

Nico’s backside hit the grass and he didn’t know what to say.

“Woah! That was nice!” Percy laughed and offered him a hand. “You think you can go again?” He asked, with beads of sweat rolling down the sides of his head, his cheeks flushed from the effort, and his sea-green eyes sparkling on the morning sun.

Nico’s blood turned into ice water. “I-I need to go.” He said, before standing up and making another hasty retreat.

So yeah. Nico doesn’t like the guy. Not even a bit. 

“Hello your Highness, what brings you here?” Sir Percy greets Jason when they make it to the armory. He’s sitting on a bench, polishing his sword and armor. The guy’s smiling, but then he sees Nico and it falters, for just a second. “Oh. Hey, Nico.”

Nico turns to Jason, as if to say, ‘see?’. 

Jason ignores him. “Hey, do you remember that quest I told you about?”

“The one about the silly flower for Lady Piper?” Percy asks. “Yeah, that’s why I sharpened Riptide,” He gestures at his sword. “When are we going off?”

“Tomorrow,” Jason answers. “And you won’t be going with me. You will be going with Sir Nico.” Percy drops his sword. Nico’s scowl deepens. Percy curses something under his breath, and Jason just sighs. “Nico, can you give us a moment?”

Nico doesn’t listen in into the conversation, because it wouldn’t be the chivalrous thing to do, but they’re so loud he ends up doing it anyway.

“You didn’t tell me it would be with _him!_ ” Percy yells at Jason. There was some mumbling followed by a series of more curses. “I don’t need your help!”

Nico just furrows his brows, confused. Help with what? Jason’s the one who needs them to get the flowers, not the other way around. 

“The road will be filled with bandits and monsters, neither of you can go alone,” Jason insists. “Besides, it’ll do you good.” There’s some more talking, and various mentions of the flower, and finally, the two come out of the armory, with Percy looking only mildly miserable.

Nico clenches his fists. Whatever, he doesn’t like the guy either.

“So,” Percy says, once they’re walking together. “Love flowers, huh?”

Nico groans. “Let’s just head to the library.” They're mythical plants, after all. He wants to know everything he can about them before they risk their lives to get them.

They do the smart thing, and ask Ella, the guardian of the library, if she knows anything about these mysterious Pyrrha roses. 

“They appear somewhere on the Magical Botany Archives, I think," Ella says, buried on her pile of books. “Somewhere between the 10th and 40th tome.”

“40 tomes?!” Percy exclaims.

Nico just sighs. “We better start looking then.”

And so they spend the rest of the day going through volumes, trying to find a match to the picture in Jason's book. Percy’s no good with letters, so he takes charge of climbing up the latter and pulling the books down. Nico doesn’t think he’s ever inhaled more dust in his life, and he once stumbled down one of the centuries-old crypts of the castle

“Why can’t the nobility just pick normal engagement gifts?” Percy asks. He went to get dinner for Nico a couple of hours ago. The guy still won’t meet his eye, but he knows the kind of cheese that Nico likes.

Maybe the quest won’t be so bad after all.

“I mean, I know flowers are a classic move, but surely just some normal roses or lilies would do? That’s what I’d use if I wanted to court someone. Not that I am trying to court someone!” Percy continues, letting out a nervous laugh. “Sir Leo tried to use poetry once with a lady, you know? I think it went well. Maybe Jason could do that instead. What do you think, Sir Nico?”

Nico takes it back.

He turns to look at his fellow knight, exasperated. “I think we should stop talking and continue going through the books, how does that sound?”

Percy smiles. “So you're more of a poetry guy, huh. I'll keep that in mind." 

Nico glares at him. “Do you actually like annoying me?”

“Maybe.” Percy admits. He then looks down at some of the five books spread over the table, and he points at one of the illustrations. “Wait, these one looks like our flowers.”

Nico’s eyes widened. “They do.” He grabs the tome, number 11 if he remembers correctly, and compares it beside Jason’s book. Yep, it’s their flowers. Nico curses. “Great, it’s written in French! I don’t know French.”

“How many languages do you know, anyway?” Percy asks, curious. "I think this is the first book I've seen you unable to read." 

“Italian, Greek, Latin and English, obviously,” Nico replies. Percy hums, genuinely impressed. While most of the knights are literate to certain levels of success, Nico’s one of the best educated, even among the noble born ones.

“I think Sir Frank knows French.” Percy comments.

Nico shakes his head. “He’s out on the field,” Percy groans. There’s not a lot of people who can both, speak and read French in the castle. “Don’t worry, kelp-face, I know who can help us.”

Thankfully, Hazel is still in her workroom when they arrive with the giant book. She’s been trying to get a spell right for the past couple of days, and everyone knows better than to burst into her space when she’s practicing with magic. Percy looks a bit nervous when Nico knocks the door, but Nico just rolls his eyes at him.

His sister opens the door, wearing her robes and that ridiculous hat the king makes all the court magicians wear. She looks adorable, particularly with the way she frowns at him.

“This better be important-” She says, but her eyes soften when she looks at them. “Oh, hello, Nico. And Sir Percy. Come in, don’t mind the mess.”

Nico smiles at her, just a little, and the duo make their way to an empty table of her workroom. Nico takes a look around, and the place hasn't changed since the last time he was here, about a month ago. While he usually has meals with Hazel, or meets her in the town’s square to spend some time together, he doesn’t come around here often. Magic’s her territory, the same way knightley activities are his, and Hazel has become a busy scholar since she was taken under Lady Hecate’s wing as her apprentice. 

Nico’s very proud of her.

“So, what do you need?” Hazel asks, taking a seat with them.

Nico shows her the book. “Jason is interested on these flowers, so we looked them up in the library, but the only book they appeared on is written in French. Is there anything useful you can tell us about them?”

“Oh!” Hazel says, taking the book in her hands. “These are fire roses, Lady Hecate has mentioned them a couple of times,” She explains. “It is said that the flowers can only be found by people meant to be together.” Percy stares directly at the drawing of the flowers, with an intensity Nico can’t describe. How strange. “So that’s why they symbolize soulmates. Supposedly, if cut they will never wither or die, if they're given to someone you truly love. It’s just an old wive’s tales, though. What could the prince want with them?”

“He thinks they would make a great engagement gift for Lady Piper,” Nico tells her. “So obviously we have to go get them.” Percy is still staring at the book, so Nico nudges him with his elbow. 

“Yeah! We’re going on a quest for some love flowers!” Percy says, his cheeks slightly red. Strange indeed. “So if that book has any information on what type of monsters we might find on that mountain, we want to know.”

“Mhmm,” Hazel starts going through the passages of the tome. “The mountain where they grow is marked as Stymphalian birds territory,” Okay, Nio's fought those before. They’re not that bad. “And… you might find gryphon nests there during the winter.” Hell. 

Percy winces. “Yeah, those are nasty.”

“We can take them, though,” Nico replies with confidence. He turns to Percy. “Let’s go rest for today.” The knight nods and stands up, heading for the door.

Hazel closes the book and hands it back to her brother. “Be careful, okay?” She says, grasping Nico's hand. She always gets like this whenever he leaves for a quest without her.

After some of the quests he's been on, Nico can’t blame her. 

He squeezes her hand and smiles at her. “Don’t worry, I will.” He leans to kiss her on the forehead and then lets go, waving goodbye before he leaves the room.

Percy’s waiting for him in the hallway. “Aww." Nico blushes a little and glares at him. “Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone you have a soft spot for your little sister. It would ruin your reputation as an edgelord.”

“Shut up,” Nico tells him. “I’ll meet you tomorrow on the stables. Bring your warmest cloak and sleeping roll. If it gets too cold, I refuse to cuddle your freezing butt.”

Percy grins. “Oh, I’m sure you won’t.”

Things are quiet on the first day. The map says there’s a town right before the start into the mountain range, and they can make it there by tomorrow's night if they keep the pace. Jules-Albert neighs, happy to do some riding despite the cold.

And it _is_ cold. Jason’s going to hear about it, once they’re back. Sending off his most loyal knights on a silly quest halfway through winter, who does his Highness think he is?

“So,” Percy says after a few hours. He’s wearing a royal blue cloak with fur lining, over his shiny silver armor, and riding his own dark horse. His name is Blackjack, apparently. “How did you meet the prince anyway?”

Nico gives him a look. His cloak is a dark gray, and his armor is black as night. “Wouldn’t you like to know.”

“Hey, there’s no need to get defensive,” Percy furrows his brows. “I’m just making conversation. We’ll be spending a lot of time on the road, and I can’t handle being in silence for long periods of time. And you said you didn’t like my whistling.”

“It’s annoying.” Nico glares.

“Well, I’m bored!” Percy glares right back. 

“Not my problem, kelp-face.”

The knight sighs. “Why do I even try…”

They keep riding. The morning sun turns into an afternoon one, and they take a break to feed the horses and have some lunch themselves. The kitchens packed them squares of ambrosia and some nectar, and enough rations to feed them for two weeks. It’s not that bad, once you get used to the chill.

“Okay, fine,” Nico cracks, after the third time they pass another stupid bridge and nothing interesting happens. “I’m bored too. What do you want to know?”

Percy shrugs, as he adjusts his gloves and cloak over his armor. “I don’t know, how did you end up in this kingdom anyway?” He asks. “I wasn’t lying about those stories about you- the Dark Knight was seen all over the lands. Errant knights hardly ever take another oath, especially ones so famous.”

Nico snorts. “I was never _famous_.”

“Yeah, you are,” He insists. “The stories arrived all the way to my village, how you’d find unjust lords and make them listen to the peasants they were mistreating.” The knight looks away for a second, and he seems… embarrassed? “Your story was part of the reason why I even took a sword in the first place, you know?”

Nico blinks. “Oh. Uh, thanks I guess?” Percy’s past isn’t a big secret at court, but Nico’s never heard the full story either.

Percy cracks a smile. “It’s nothing. But yeah, I want to know what was just rumors and what was the truth. Care to share?”

Nico thinks for a second and takes a deep breath. “Well, first of all, I was never really an errant knight. I wasn’t even a knight until I got here.” 

Percy seems surprised. “You weren’t?”

“No,” He explained. “I was just some mourning kid who put on an armor and decided to hunt down an enemy.” 

He tells the story as the moon comes up. They leave Jules and Blackjack to rest with their bags at the camp they’ve set up, while they start looking for firewood.

“My parents were nobles,” Nico starts. “I grew up alone with my older sister, Bianca. Our mother was a loving woman, and our father was distant, but he cared,” The dark knight smiles sadly. “He got us a lot of fancy tutors and trainers. He had a soft spot for our dog, though, and our mom, of course. Our fiefdom wasn’t big, but my father was a good lord, and so the townspeople never knew any hunger. Our house was close to the beach. My sister and I would spend all our day there, playing with wooden swords and running around.”

“That sounds lovely,” Percy comments. When they gather enough wood, they return to their horses, and start a fire next to their bed rolls.

“It was.” Nico says, sad. Percy leans forward, waiting to hear the rest.

“One day,” Nico continues. “A strange lord came to our house. My father served under the current king, Jason’s father, actually, but our state was so far down south that we didn’t get a lot of letters or visitors. Bianca and I were very excited at first, but my father seemed… tense.” The knight stares at the flames as he keeps talking. “My mother reassured him that he had nothing to fear, and that he should let them in." His face turns grim. "I think you know how the rest went.”

Percy lowers his shoulders. “Yeah, I do."

The two stayed in silence for a second.

“Nico,” Percy starts. “You don’t have to keep telling me if you don’t want to.”

The dark knight appreciates the offer, but- “It’s okay," He says. "The memory hurts less, now." Nico leans back, looking up at the stars. “So yeah, I spent a couple of years traveling and hiding, while the invaders took control of our state and they pillaged through nearby towns. I didn’t do much back then, but train and plan my eventual revenge against the guy who killed my family.” It was truly the worst period of his life. He was so alone and angry. 

Percy nods. “You found Hazel somewhere along the way, didn’t you?”

“Yeah,” Nico smiles, remembering the tiny, golden-eyed spitfire his sister was back then. “I’m glad I did. She saved me in more ways than one.” Now that he had someone to look after, he was less prone to reckless attacks and suicidal missions. Percy smiles. “So we traveled for a few years, freeing up any villages that were under the invaders’ rule, or who just had a bad, unjust lord. It was mainly Hazel doing that though, I mostly just did all the fighting.”

“You dueled and won against Lycaon the Fierce,” Percy says, almost star-eyed. “You took down Lord Lawrence’s forces single-handedly. I’m pretty sure you also fought against a whole gang of cyclops once.”

Nico blushed a little again, lowering his head. “The rumors are exaggerated…” Although the Lycaon thing was true, and he did defeat Lord Lawrence eventually.

“Nico,” Percy insists. “You’re a legend, just admit it.” Nico punches him on the arm, for that one. Percy laughs. “Okay so, how did you meet the prince?”

“The stories didn’t tell you that one?” Nico tells him. Percy gives him a look. “Okay, well. Turns out, I wasn’t the only one who had a vendetta against the bastard. I was going to run into Jason eventually. The prince was halfway through a quest, and we had both tracked our prey to the other side of the Haunted Forest of the eastern border,” Percy looked at him, entranced by the story. “Jason and I got into a fight at first, but Hazel convinced us to stand down and work together. Each part of the forest was getting harder and harder to get through. There were monsters, traps, and even a crazy witch trying to kill us. I think we spent two weeks there, trying to find our way out.”

Percy grinned. “You saved Jason’s life on one occasion, if I remember correctly?” 

“More than once,” Nico grinned back. They had become something close to friends by the end of it all, after a particular encounter with a winged individual. “Hazel saved our butts with her magic too, a couple of times."

“What happened, when you found your guy?” Percy asked.

Nico sighs, looking at the fire again. “Well, I was ready to put my blade through his chest for every family member he’d killed, but…”

“Let me guess, the prince thought differently?” 

Nico nods. “‘Murder is bad, Nico.’ Jason said. He asked me to help him deliver the guy to the kingdom, so he could face trial for all the things he’d done. I had my sword against the bastard’s throat at that point, but Hazel and him were just looking at me, unsure of what I would do next.”

“What did you do?”

“I let him go. Jason knighted me after that.” Nico sighs, remembering his rage, remembering how it felt to finally let it go.

Percy’s hand moves to Nico’s shoulder. “You did the right thing.”

He still wonders about that, sometimes. 

The campfire lessens, so they toss another piece of wood into the flames. 

“What about you?” Nico asks, after a while. “How did you end up in the kingdom.”

“Oh, the reason's not as exciting,” Percy tried to deflect. “No heroics for me, just humble beginnings-”

Nico hits him with his shoulder. “I mean it, kelp-face. You made me tell you my entire tragic backstory, so it’s only fair you tell me yours.” Percy snorts. Nico’s voice softens, just a little. “I uh… I want to know.”

“Well, if you insist…” Percy smiles at him. “I was just a peasant. I lived alone with my mom, I never really knew my dad. No fancy tutors or anything, just farm work under the sun all day,” Nico winces for a second. “Hey, it wasn’t so bad. We had just enough to get by, and my mom is the best mom ever.”

“I bet.” 

“She is!” Percy nudges him back. “I’ll have you know that I’ve dueled no less than three people for saying she isn’t, Sir Nico, I’m prepared to do so again.” 

And those make Nico laugh. “You really love her, don't you?”

“With all my heart,” Percy says, and it makes Nico smile. 

“Our village had always been ransacked by bandits,” The knight continues. “It’s just life, there. Not all lords are as nice as Jason’s dad or yours. You learn to keep your head low and just give them what they want, and how to hide just enough so you and your family don’t starve.” Percy’s face turned dark again. Nico lets him continue. “They kidnapped my mom, once,” Nico’s eyes widened. “I went to see our lord. My mom hadn’t been the only woman they’d taken, and the village had grown tired of so many attacks. The lord had knights and trained soldiers, he could help, if he wanted to.”

“What did he do?”

“Nothing, of course,” Percy replies. “So I stole an armor and a sword from his armory, and went to rescue them by myself. I tracked down those bandits and taught them a lesson, just like you did.” The knight bumps his shoulder with Nico’s, and Nico smiles again.

Percy’s story has a happy ending, unlike his. 

“I imagine the lord didn’t like that one bit.” Nico tells him.

“He wanted to hang me, for ‘stealing noble property’,” Percy says the last part imitating Duke Octavian’s ridiculous accent, and Nico laughs. “They had the noose on my neck when my mom stepped forward, and finally revealed that my father was another noble. I’m sure you know the rest- I arrived at the castle, and Jason knighted me a couple of weeks later.”

Nico bumps their shoulders together again. “You know, Sir Percy, you’re not so bad after all.”

Percy smiles at him. “I’m glad you think so, Sir Nico.”

The campfire continues to burn infront of them, and they settle in for the night, side to side.

They run into the Stymphalian birds on the second day. It goes surprisingly bad. When Hazel said this was their territory, Nico hadn't known just how many goddamn birds she was talking about.

Sir Percy’s panting and sweating, holding up his sword by the time the stupid little hellbeasts decide to leave them alone. “I got 52 of the bastards, how many did you get?”

“54.” Nico replies.

Percy smirks again, in that way Nico used to find so annoying and now he doesn't. “We make a good team, you know?”

“Yeah,” Nico says, cleaning the golden dust off his armor and cloak. “We need to get moving. If those things come back, I’m not sure they won’t completely devour the horses this time.” Jules-Albert neighs in agreement.

When they make it into town, it’s already night again and Percy and Nico are having a very serious and important discussion. 

“No, I’m telling you,” Sir Percy insists. “The Yule Festival is definitely the best holiday in the kingdom! The decorations, the candles, the _banquet!_ Who in their right minds would say that freaking- All Hallow’s Eve is a better festivity?”

“Well, I, for one, have fond memories of dressing up for the latter and not so fond ones of me freezing my ass off during the former.” Sir Nico counters, as they settle their horses down on the stable of the local inn. Nico pats Jules-Albert, while Percy does the same with Blackjack. “And if we’re talking about food, the pumpkin cake served during All Hallow’s Eve tops whatever they serve at the Yule banquet.”

“Excuse me?” Percy gasps in fake outrage. “Have you ever had a proper boar roast in your life? Nothing can top that, Nico, nothing. And cake is good, but I prefer cookies.”

Nico frowns. “Who prefers cookies over _cake?”_

After they get a room, they go to the pub downstairs, trying to gather information about the mountain they’ll be climbing up tomorrow. Gryphons are dangerous, after all, especially right after mating season.

“You’ll probably be fine, from what I can see,” The bartender says, eyeing their armors and smiling. Nico feels a bit flustered, all of the sudden. Percy frowns, just slightly. “You’re part of the prince’s entourage, aren’t you?” The guy gestures at the emblems on their cloaks, embroidered with golden thread and sparkling on the firelight. Nico nods. “You should probably worry more about the bandits up there, then.”

“We can handle some bandits, right, Nico?” Percy slaps him on the back.

Nico winces, because the bartender is still staring at them. “Yeah…”

The bartender continues. “What do you two have to do up there, anyway? Don’t tell you’re after those silly fire flowers?” Nico and Percy share a look. The guy laughs. “Aw, man, there’s easier ways to find love, pal, and trust me, you won’t even have to go that far up.” 

Percy’s frown deepens. 

“T-they're not for us,” Nico insists. “Is there anything you can tell us about them though?”

The bartender shrugs. “Oh, nothing really, other than they grow up very high, and usually inside caves. No one’s seen one of those pretty things,” He leans forward, his grin turning into something… different. “At least not recently.” 

Nico blinks. Percy groans. The bartender gives them their drinks and winks at the dark knight, before he leaves. Nico watches him go. 

“Was he… was he hitting on me?” Nico asks, confused.

“You think?” Percy asks, sounding a little sarcastic.

Nico furrows his brows. “I mean, I’m not good with these sorts of things. Maybe he was just being nice?”

“Oh my god,” Percy hisses, his hands on his head. “Nico. He was hitting on you! _Totally_ hitting on you!”

“Oh.” Nico raises his eyebrows, blushing just slightly. “Uh, why?” 

“Because you’re like, kind of very handsome?” Percy answers, looking at him like he’s an idiot. Nico’s face turns into an entire tomato. 

The dark knight has been called many things in his life. Intimidating, ruthless, terrifying- and a long list of insults that include everything from ‘ugly’ to ‘a complete abomination’.

He’s never been called _handsome_ before. 

Nico takes a sip of his drink. “If he’s gonna hit on one of us for being handsome, he’d probably hit on you, Sir Percy.” His friend freezes, for a moment, and then he looks away, embarrassed. Nico grins- if he’s gonna be teased, he’ll give as good as he gets. “You want to continue with our discussion or what?”

“Sure,” Percy rolls his eyes. “Please, Sir Nico, tell me why cake is better than cookies…”

The two knights keep talking until late in the night. They agree to disagree on the cake thing when Nico states that he was ready to go to arms over it. They move on to share anecdotes and stories- Nico tells Percy about the plant wizard and how he ended up owning Jason that favor in the first place, and Percy tells Nico about his first campaign outside the castle with Sir Frank, just after they had been knighted.

Percy is a great storyteller. He makes Nico laugh so hard once, that the ale came out of his nose. Nico threatens that no one will ever find his corpse if Percy ever tells anyone. Percy reassures him he won’t, but says he’ll treasure the memory forever.

The bartender comes to refill their drinks a couple of times, throughout the evening. He keeps giving Nico eyes, whenever he does. Percy keeps glaring at him, whenever he leaves.

They’re going to have hangovers tomorrow, but Nico decides he doesn’t care one bit. 

The third day on the road is uneventful, as is the fourth one. As their ascent continues, their surroundings become colder and colder, and Nico’s grateful he packed his wolf’s fur cloak. They’ve started to scour around the few places with vegetation they can find, even venturing inside one of the caves after they’ve set camp on it, but there’s still no sign of the fire roses. 

Sir Percy and him have settled into their camaraderie, and Nico starts to question why he didn’t give the guy an opportunity when they first met.

“It was probably my fault,” Percy admits. “I wanted to get your attention, but I wasn’t sure how to approach you. I was the peasant-born rookie, and you were the prince’s right-hand man. So I thought asking you to fight me was probably the best option.”

Nico gives him a fond look. “Why didn’t you just ask me out for a drink, or something more normal?”

Percy looks embarrassed. “I uh, didn’t think you’d say yes...”

Nico can’t blame him. He’s a reserved person- he usually declines the offer whenever the other knights have any sort of social gathering. He only attends the banquets because he’s expected to, and because the last time he didn’t someone nearly assassinated Jason.

“I would have accepted, though,” Nico says. “If you’d been nice about it.”

Percy pauses for a moment to look at him. Even Blackjack stops walking. It’s the same look he’s been giving Nico during the whole quest, and it's one Nico can’t decipher. The guy’s warm, sea-green eyes met his dark ones, and Nico’s unsure of what to do or say, for a second.

And that’s, of course, when a couple of very angry gryphons descend from the skies, hellbent on keeping the knights away from their precious babies.

“Watch out!” Nico yells, and Percy barely has time to duck the giant pair of claws that comes for him. Nico raises his head, to see the beasts up in the air, looking down at him with their beady, red eyes, the afternoon sun shining off their razor sharp beaks.

Nico’s both frightened and amazed by the things. He turns to Percy, who’s unsheathed Riptide already. “Didn’t you say we’d steer clear from the nests if we stuck to this side of the mountain?!” Percy yells. 

The gryphon lets out a scream, similar to that of an eagle but around twenty times louder. The knights cover their ears, as their horses whine, and some of the snow of nearby trees falls to the ground. 

“I don’t understand!” Nico yells back. “They usually don’t hunt this late in the afternoon, something must have drawn them out!”

One of the gryphons comes down for another swoop again. Nico raises his sword, but it's too late. The beast moves extremely fast, and it hits Nico on the back, making him fall off his horse.

The fall hurts a lot. Nico’s glad he's wearing armor.

“Hyah!” Percy cries out, as he slashes one of the monsters, getting it on the leg. The gryphon lets out another ear-piercing screech, and it flies up again. 

Jules-Albert isn’t a bred and raised war-horse for nothing. While Nico’s on the ground and the other gryphon tries to pounce at him, the horse goes up on his hind-legs, and stomps at their attacker, neighing angrily and protecting his master.

The gryphon goes up in the air with its mate. Percy jumps off his horse, and rushes to Nico’s side. “Are you hurt?” Percy asks, keeping an eye out for the beasts, his sword held tightly while he offers Nico his other hand.

“Just my pride,” Nico answers as he takes his arm and pulls himself up, just in time to dodge, as one of the gryphons tries to grab him again. “Hell!” Nico curses, as Percy holds his arm, keeping them both up. “What do they want?!”

Percy blinks. “Wait. Gryphons are attracted to shiny things, right?”

A gryphon comes down again. Jules-Albert neighs, ready to fight some more, but Blackjack looks properly spooked. 

“I think so!” Nico groans, looking up. He can’t see the things, dammit! “Why do you ask, shouldn’t we be thinking of a plan to-” Another screech. Gods. “-Get rid of these things?!”

“Nico,” Percy says. “Our cloaks! They want the golden emblems!”

The two beasts come at them this time. Nico and Percy separate, jumping to the ground and rolling, barely missing the claws.

“We have to give them our cloaks!” Percy insists.

“We’ll freeze without them!” Nico yells back.

One of the monsters is harassing their horses. Jules kicks it while Blackjack stands up, scared as hell. The beast screeches at them, growing angrier.

“It’s that or our rides!” Percy glares at him.

Jules is the last thing Nico has from his parents.

“Fine!” He tells him, taking his cloak off and tossing it to Percy. “But I refuse to drag your sorry corpse back to the castle if you die from the cold!”

“Duly noted!” Percy grins, catching the thing and starting to take off his own cloak. 

And the guy does one of the most stupid things Nico’s ever seen someone do.

He waves both cloaks around like they’re red banners, and the gryphons are a couple of bulls. “Hey, bird brains!” Percy screams. “You want these? Come and get them!”

The gryphons are on him faster than either of them can say ‘flower’.

Nico drops his sword, and tackles Percy to the ground harder and faster than he’s ever tackled anyone. The other knight lets the cloaks go just in time for the gryphons to grab them with their lion legs, once the knights aresare on the ground, away from talons and beaks.

Still, Nico covers Percy with his body, more out of instinct than anything. He feels a gale of wind hit him in the neck, but they stay on the ground until the gryphons’ shadows disappear from above them.

Nico pushes himself up on his elbows and laughs, out of sheer relief. “I can’t believe that worked!” And then he remembers what Percy just did, and his joy turns to anger. “What were you thinking?!” He yells, looking down at his fellow knight and shaking his chest plate. “Couldn’t you have just tossed the cloaks away? Gods above, Percy, that was so stupid and reckless! If I hadn't tackled you, you would have died- _”_

“Nico,” Percy says, sounding tense and trying to not look him in the eye. “Can you please get off me?”

“What- ah, right, sorry!” Nico’s off him in a heartbeat. Percy takes a while to stand up, and even then he still won’t look at Nico. The dark knight furrows his brows. “Is something wrong?” Nico grabs his arm, examining him. Everything seems in order, but he does look a little flushed. 

“I’m fine!” He says, his cheeks grow redder. 

Nico leans closer. “Percy, if you’re hurt-”

“No,” He insists. “I’m fine, completely fine, it’s just, uh-” Percy inhales sharply. “Can you take a step back? Please?” 

Nico blinks, letting go of Percy’s arm. “Oh. Okay.” 

Percy looks a bit guilty. “Hey, it’s okay. It’s just, you know, the cold.”

And yeah, without his cloak Nico can now feel the chill of the mountain. He shudders a little. 

“We should probably find somewhere to camp before the sun goes down,” Nico suggests. And then, because Percy still seems… weird, he adds. “Are you sure you’re okay? I meant it, man, I don’t want to drag your corpse all the way back to the castle…”

Percy’s face softens. “Yeah, Nico, I’m sure.” Nico smiles at him, just a little. Percy’s cheeks turn red again and he looks away.

Nico raises his eyebrows.

Wait a second.

The looks. The teasing. The bartender.

The whole, blasted duel. 

Nico puts a hand on his forehead. The constant pestering him, back at the castle. The incident at the banquet. 

‘I wanted to get your attention.’ Percy had said. _Twice._

The dark knight looks at his fellow knight. He’s checking on his horse. He’ll probably start talking while they look for a place to set camp. He’s always talking, trying to get Nico to open up, even if it’s just to argue about something silly.

Gods, Nico feels like such an _idiot._

Percy called him handsome, at the bar. ‘You’re a legend.’ He’d said, during their first night. ‘Your story was part of the reason why I even took a sword in the first place.’

Nico looks at Percy as they get back into their horses, Nico's grip tightening on Jules-Albert's reigns.

Well, this is going to be a very awkward night.

They find another cave, but still no flowers.There's a few man-made items inside the place, but they look old and rusty as hell, so Nico supposes that they were left there by previous people trying to find the Pyrrha roses. Exhausted and cold, the knights start a fire and settle down to sleep on their separate bed rolls.

Nico dreams of their duel that night, but it goes a little different than last time.

The dark knight steps forward, his sword clashing against Percy’s, the other knight’s back hitting a wall. They're both panting, but they keep pushing against each other, refusing to back down.

“You think you’re so tough, huh?” Nico leans into him, his blade pressed against Percy’s. There was fire running under his veins, his heart racing and beating and _alive._

“Tougher than you think.” Percy smirks, looking him right on the eye. There are beads of sweat rolling down the sides of his head, his cheeks flushed from their contact, and his sea-green eyes sparkling on the morning sun.

They’re so close that Nico can feel Percy’s breath on him.

“Damn.” Nico says, dropping his sword and pulling the other guy into a violent kiss.

Percy’s big, calloused hands travel to his back and his hip, and he bites Nico’s lip. The dark knight moans, pressing Percy further into the wall.

It feels nice. 

Especially when they separate, and Percy still has his arms around Nico, grinning. Not his usual smirk, but a softer smile that grows wider when he looks at him. Like he cares about him, cares for real.

It feels more than nice.

Nico kisses him again.

Then there’s a loud thud, and the dark knight wakes up. He rises from his bedroll, cursing under his breath. The horses are neighing, agitated, and a guy is walking all over the cave. Nico’s going to murder Percy for- for stopping his dream about him. Gods, what is happening to him?

“Hey, can you stop being so loud with-” Nico’s halfway through saying when he notices that the man inside their cave isn’t Percy.

The actual Percy is on the ground, being manhandled by three separate bandits. One of them tries to cover his mouth, but Percy bites his hand, and manages to yell. “Nico, look out!”

But it’s too late. One of the bandits has a blade on his throat. Nico raises his hands in surrender. 

“I want you to know that I blame you for this,” Nico whispers to Percy.

Percy opens his mouth, offended, and he whispers back. “How is this my fault?!”

The bandits brought them to a deeper part of the cave. They tied the knights against a rock, side by side. The bandits have already gone through most of the knights’ belongings and one of them even dared to lay a hand on Nico’s horse, which he’ll make them pay for once he gets out of these ropes. 

Oh, and he will. The bandits might have taken off the bigger parts of their armors, but they forgot to check them for any hidden weapons. It’s standard procedure for knights of the realm to keep a knife strapped on their boots for occasions such as this. Nico, of course, keeps two knives, as well as a dagger strapped to his back. 

The knights have already loosened the ropes, they just have to wait for an opportunity to break free and fight their way out. 

So for now, while the outlaws finish their games of cards, Nico will have a long overdue talk with Sir Percy.

“You’re very distracting,” Nico says. “If it weren’t for all your flirting and your- manly charms or whatever, I would have noticed that we accidentally set camp inside a bandits’ lair!”

Percy smirks, despite everything. “My manly charms, huh?”

“No whispering!” One of the bandits yells, but it doesn’t stop them.

“How long, kelp-face?” Nico asks.

“How long what?” Percy asks back. Nico just gives him a look. Percy lets out a nervous laugh. “I don’t know, how long have I been in the castle?”

“Eight months?!” Nico exclaims and Percy looks away, embarrassed. 

“I said no whispering!” The bandit yells again, this time slamming his fist down on the table. He’s a big guy, about twice Nico’s size. 

“Maybe we should continue with this at a later time.” Percy suggests, whispering more quietly.

Nico glares at him, but he also lowers his voice. “Maybe we shouldn’t,” He insists. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I don’t know, Nico, why didn’t you notice?” 

“I told you I’m no good with these things!”

Percy furrows his brows. “You seemed to get them when it was that bartender,” Nico rolls his eyes. “I asked you to dance at the banquet. It was pretty obvious, dude, the other knights keep teasing me about it! Even Jason- he only sent us into this stupid quest to see whether we’d finally get together or something-”

“Wait, what?” Nico interrupts. “What does the quest have to do with us getting together?”

Percy gives him a look. “Don’t you remember what your sister said about the flowers?”

“Of course I do! They represent soulmates or something and- oh…”

Nico looks up at the cave's ceiling, groaning. Percy shakes his head. Nico kicks him, still tied.

“Hey!” Percy protests. “Don’t blame me, it wasn’t my idea!”

“I’m going to kill Jason when we get back.” Nico promises. 

One of the bandits throws an old, smelly boot at them, and it hits Percy on the face so they do keep quiet after that. Nico does some thinking.

He thinks about the night at the pub, how much Percy made him laugh. He thinks about all the conversations they’ve had these past few days, about how he enjoyed the silly ones where they just goofed around as much as the serious ones where they opened up.

He thinks about their encounter with the gryphons. He thinks about how quickly Percy rushed to his side, and how panicked Nico was when he thought Percy got hurt.

And yeah, he thinks about the duel. Maybe he’s been thinking about the duel a lot lately, maybe he was thinking about it even before they went on the quest. 

Maybe he’d like to have a real life version of his dream. 

“I think I like you too.” The dark knight blurts out, before he can stop himself.

Percy’s eyes widen. Nico blushes bright red.

“For- for real?” Percy asks, a smile growing on his face. Nico nods, a little pleased. Maybe more than a little. “Woah. Okay. That’s great-” Percy blinks. “Wait, do you see those flowers?”

“What flowers?” 

“Nico, look at the ground.” Percy says. Nico does. His eyebrows go up. 

Where seconds ago there was nothing, there’s now tiny, multicolored roses around their feet. It's like they've sprouted from the cave’s ground, blooming all around them. The petals are red, yellow and orange, with a bit of white right at the tips.

So that’s why they’re called fire roses. 

“They’re beautiful…” Percy whispers.

Nico looks up at the bandits. They’re still playing cards, and they have started drinking. They haven’t noticed the flowers. In fact, they act like they can’t see them.

‘The flowers can only be found by people meant to be together.’ Hazel had said.

Okay. He might _not_ kill Jason when they return to the castle.

“So, there’s eight of them,” Nico tells Percy. “I can see our swords and armor on the table over there. How many can you take before you get to our weapons?”

“With just my boot knife and my fists?” He asks, eying them. And yeah, the bandits look kind of very drunk. “Five of them, or one of them plus the very big guy. Probably two of them, plus him.”

“I’ll take on the big guy,” Nico replies, reaching at his back for his dagger. “You focus on disarming as many of them as you can and getting us our weapons.”

Percy grins. “As you command, Sir Nico.”

The fight goes quickly. As it turns out, the big guy had more than just a few drinks. It’s embarrassing these guys managed to ambush them in the first place, in retrospect.

When the last bandit falls, Percy grabs Nico by the shoulders and pulls him into a kiss. It’s even better than the dream, because Percy presses their chests close together and leans down, moving a hand through Nico’s hair. Just like in the dream, Nico closes his eyes and melts into it, moaning.

When they separate, Percy’s smiling like he’d just been crowned king. Nico laughs, pressing his head on the other knight's shoulder. 

Maybe the legend about the flowers wasn't a lie, after all. 


End file.
